Epistemic and Exegetical Analysis of the Early Writings of the Young Søren Kierkegaard. Part Two: Potential Consequences of the Danish Intellectual Debate in the Early Works of the Young Søren Kierkegaard

The present text examines Søren Kierkegaard’s intellectual development during his years as a student at the University of Copenhagen (1830-1840) and explores how the philosophical and cultural environment of the time shaped his early writings. It delves into the reception of Hegelian ideas and German Romanticism, as well as the role of key Danish figures such as Johan Ludvig Heiberg and Poul Martin Møller. Through an analysis of four early works by Kierkegaard, the text traces his evolution from an initial Romantic inclination towards a critical approach that assimilates and reinterprets Hegelian concepts. Additionally, the study discusses the potential connections between these early influences and his master’s thesis, On the Concept of Irony with Constant Reference to Socrates (1841), highlighting the significance of these formative experiences in shaping his philosophical project. Ultimately, the study concludes that the Danish intellectual milieu, along with the contemporary debates on Hegel’s philosophy, played a crucial role in the development of a distinctive philosophical style that foreshadows many of the central themes in Kierkegaard’s later work.